Hawthorn coach Sam Mitchell reckons it's still too early for his side to be considered one of the AFL's big dogs, but they'll soon get there if their confidence doesn't morph into complacency.
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The Hawks posted their fifth win on the trot - and their seventh from their past eight games - with a 61-point demolition of West Coast in Perth.
Although Hawthorn (8-7) are a lowly 13th on the ladder, they are only half a win adrift of the eighth-placed Brisbane Lions, and one win behind fifth-placed Geelong.
The Hawks, along with Sydney, are arguably the hottest team in the AFL right now, but Mitchell is doing his best to keep things under wraps.
"I think you get what you deserve in the game, so we deserve to be where we are (in 13th spot)," Mitchell said.
"We haven't been consistent enough and we haven't played at our best often enough for the whole season. It's a long year and you don't get to just win different parts of it.
"I still watch the best teams in the competition and think they're a bit ahead of us right at this moment."
Hawthorn started the year with five straight losses, but the squad is now oozing confidence following their sparkling run of form.
Their only loss across the past eight matches was a one-point defeat to Port Adelaide that they almost had in the bag.
"We deserve to feel confident, but that doesn't give you the right to be complacent. That sometimes can be a fine line," Mitchell said.
"I love that our players play with an enormous amount of confidence and so long as we keep it as confidence and not as complacency, then I'm all for it."
The triumph in Perth marked Hawthorn's first interstate win this season, aside from their two victories at their home-away-from-home at York Park in Launceston.
Mitchell wants his team to become road warriors.
"There's lots of stepping stones to become the team that you want to be and one of them is obviously winning on the road," Mitchell said.
"You can't afford to be a team in this national competition that loses away all the time, and that has been us unfortunately.
"So it's a step forward for our maturity today that we're able to get a win on the road and hopefully that's the first of a run."
The Hawks' hot run will receive a stern test when they face the Cats at GMHBA Stadium on Saturday.
Hawthorn could be without skipper James Sicily, whose troublesome right shoulder popped out again during Sunday's win over West Coast.
Australian Associated Press
